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Material Girls

If we're living in a material world, then the superficial Material Girls fits right in. This brainless new film from director Martha Coolidge stars real-life sisters Hilary and Haylie Duff as socialite siblings Tanzie and Ava Marchetta. With heels clicking, bangles jingling, hair extensions swishing and gum smacking, these girls have it all. They are heiresses to their late father's multi-million dollar cosmetics company, which affords them with designer clothes, a huge mansion, a nice car, and access to all the hottest clubs in LA. But their charmed life is about to be rocked by a scandal. It seems their father's most popular face cream has caused horrible skin reactions on hundreds of consumers. Now the girls have a choice: sell the company to ruthless competitor Fabiella (the under-used and out-of-place Anjelica Huston) or defend their father's legacy.

Contrary to what you might assume the girls are never really poor, per say. Their finances are just temporarily in limbo. But nonetheless the movie takes every opportunity to show these spoiled brats out of their perfectly polished element while attempting to do very normal things. Broken heels, hand-me-down clothes (which still manage to look fabulous, by the way), first-time bus rides and visits to an unemployment agency beg to be laughed at, so much so that it's sort of pathetic.

Tanzie and Ava aren't even clueless in a cute way; they're clueless in a how-can-anyone-be-that-stupid kind of way. Rather than call the fire department when they accidentally set their mansion on fire, the sisters grab their most prized possessions and bolt, leaving their house to burn to the ground. And when they arrive at their maid's house in a considerably less wealthy neighborhood, they think the two thugs loitering outside the apartment are valet parkers and leave them the keys to their Mercedes. (It's also quite funny that the two "thugs" are played by Joel and Benji Madden of Good Charlotte fame. Wonder whose idea that was, Hil.) Oh, and here are some other priceless gems for ya: Tanzie refers to the Spice Girls as classic rock and they both think IMs count for typing skills!

Yes, the girls lack some common sense"”but at least they don't take the easy way out, and instead take matters into their own hands to try to clear their father's name. If they had simply sold the company, there would be no movie. (Hey, there's an idea.) It's a shame the movie was made because the predictable plot will most likely turn your brain to mush, much like Tanzie's homemade avocado facial scrub. The neat and tidy, girls-save-the-day ending is not particularly rewarding considering we never really have a reason to care for these characters in the first place.

Once Tanzie starts going all Erin Brokovich to investigate the company's scandal, the

lazy script really becomes apparent. It basically steals another movie's plot and tries to incorporate it into its own. But even borrowing ideas from a good movie can't save this one.

It's obvious to anyone who has seen the Duff sisters in public that they are very close, and making a movie together was probably a fun experience for them"”but the ugly fact is, they both need to grow as actresses. Older sister Ava's tantrums are forced and phony, and her one "emotional" scene with the maid is all crocodile tears"”not buying it. Haylie's definitely not ready to headline a movie.

As Hilary has grown up a bit, she has lost some of that cute, klutzy charm she utilized so well on Lizzie Maguire. Sure, we can't all retain our innocent youthfulness, but Hilary needs to better transition herself and broaden her roles as an actress if she wants staying power. She needs to retain some of her sparkling sweetness, too, and not get backed into dull, repetitive characters. Hilary lacks her natural spunk in Materials Girls, even seeming a little bored at times.

Had Material Girls been an actual parody on the socialite lifestyle and had the guts to spoof rich chicks like Paris Hilton, it might have turned into an interesting, biting"”and perhaps even funny"”satire. But instead we get a movie with an Olsen twins direct-to-video quality that fails to delve beyond its glossy, sparkly, superficial exterior.

Much like Marchetta cosmetics, this movie proves to be only skin deep.

Movie Grade: D

Synopsis:

Two wealthy sisters, both heiresses to their family’s cosmetics fortune, are given a wake-up call when a scandal and ensuing investigation strip them of their wealth.